1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to enhancing a screen-phone by the addition of the text data transfer mechanism. Users of two of these terminals transfer textual is data from one keyboard to the screen of the other terminal during a regular voice call. There is no need to connect to a special server or have TTY operator see the text data sent by the transmitting terminal. As well, once the data burst is complete, normal voice conversation can be resumed.
2. Discussion of Related Art
Hearing impaired persons can communicate with others via existing telephone voice lines in various ways. They may use a special terminal and the service pack that consists of an operator who types one end of the conversation to be displayed on the special terminal. This is a costly solution involving people and special terminals. Other people in the household also cannot use the special terminal for a regular telephone.
Data transfer is available on some phones but is usually limited to directory transfers for example. It is not dynamic. That is the user cannot type something in and transmit that information. Also, this is a point to point data connection. One cannot move between voice and data in this same call.
ADSI (Type III) addresses voice and text data but one must again connect and be limited to a special ADSI server.
It would be desirable to intermix data and voice on voice circuits so that textual data can be transmitted and received on the screen-phone without the use of special servers or services and at anytime throughout a regular voice conversation. Thus, if there is a word or phrase that a hearing impaired user cannot understand from the other party during the course of a regular voice conversation, the other party can type in the word or phrase on the keyboard. The data will be transmitted to the receiving screen phone and be displayed for a period of time. Regular conversation can them be continued.
It would also be desirable for such intermix of data and voice on voice circuits to be used to send directory or caller list information from one phone to another. Further, it would be desirable to send information from one phone to another, for example to send a name and number or portion of an email message to another person. Further such an intermix of data and voice on voice circuits would not only be suitable for the hearing impaired, but also suited for transfer of messages, phone numbers or other textual information from one terminal to another while on a regular voice call.
One aspect of the invention resides in an intermixing data and voice device and a method. The aspect concerns a screen phone that includes a screen display, a microphone, a speaker, a controller, a receiver of incoming messages, a detector of a CAS tone received by the receiver, a sender of outgoing messages, a generator of the outgoing messages to transmit to the sender, the generator being configured and arranged to generate an acknowledgement of detection of the CAS tone, a muter configured and arranged to mute the microphone and the speaker in response to detection of the CAS tone by the detector, the generator being configured and arranged to generator replies to received queries provided the microphone and the speaker are muted by the muter, the receiver being arranged and configured to receive as one of the incoming messages an information package containing data, the controller being arranged and configured to instruct the screen display to display the data.
Another aspect concerns a controller, a muter, a receiver, a sender, a detector and a generator. The muter is arranged and configured to mute a speaker and a microphone in response to the incoming phone call in accordance with instructions from the controller. The generator is configured and arranged to generate, in accordance with instructions from the controller, a CAS tone in response to an incoming phone call. The generator also makes queries about graphic support in response to receipt of an incoming acknowledgement message and queries about textual support in response to receipt of an incoming acknowledgement message that is negative. The generator generates an information package in response to receipt of a incoming acknowledgement message that is positive.
The sender is configured and arranged to send all that is generated by the generator as outgoing messages. The receiver is arranged and configured to receive incoming messages. The detector is configured and arranged to detect receipt by the receiver of each of the acknowledgment incoming messages. The controller is configured and arranged to instruct the muter to cease muting the microphone and the speaker in response to the detector detecting a further incoming message indicative of safe receipt of the information package.